The Time is Ripe
by Casa Circe
Summary: ZUTARA WEEK 2012 Day Seven: Seasons. There are many stages that a heart goes through before it can finally be ready for the love it was meant to have. The road is often a rocky one but eventually, it leads you home.


**ZUTARA WEEK 2012, Day 7: SEASONS**

**The Time is Ripe**

**DISCLAIMER: **_**Avatar: the Last Airbender **_**belongs to Bryke, but Zutara Week belongs to all Zutarians. And I always write in a context where neither Kataang nor Maiko ever happened.**

**It's my fifth year of Zutara week and though I was late during the actual dates, I did not want a year to go by without my contributing to it. So I decided to post all my entries on the last "special" date for the century – 12-12-12. Better late than never, I hope.**

**NOTE: Here's the last one. I finished my fifth Zutara week so this is a milestone. Thanks for reading until this one and I hope you liked my entries this year. Nothing great but hopefully still worthwhile reads.**

**In another attempt to interpret the prompt creatively, I chose to use an agricultural metaphor as opposed to the expected four seasons of weather. I think this fits the development of Zuko and Katara's relationship quite well, or that may just be me. I used a weird style as well, more descriptive and very often cheesy. It was very experimental and short but it's also a sort of manifesto of my being Zutarian. It's hard to explain and I can only hope that you won't find it too boring.**

**Thank you for reading!**

_Drought_

In the beginning, there was nothing but a barren land where nothing would grow. There was no room in her heart for love of an enemy who had torn her family apart. There was no place for new love to take root in his heart whose only desire was his father's acceptance. The time was not yet right for them to meet, and many trials they would have to face before they were ready. The last waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe and the banished prince of the Fire Nation led completely different lives, their paths still far apart and these had yet to cross. They knew nothing of each other and of the important roles they were meant to play in each other's lives. So in the years before a Fire Nation ship landed in the South Pole, there was nothing.

His heart, in particular, remained like a dry, arid desert, and he was thirsting for love like the land thirsted for water. For only water would truly refresh him and prepare him for greater things. He needed water to live but he did not understand how much he needed it.

But both hearts were still infertile, not yet suitable for new things to grow, at least, not something as new and different as the love of a foe.

_Plague_

And then came troubled times, filled with hostility and horror. This was the season of struggle, where they clashed many times, each one defending what they held dear. They were at odds; they were at war. No alliance could be formed; no compromises could be made. Whenever they met, they fought, fire against water, sun against moon. There was room for nothing else between them. Only destruction.

For so long, he could not let go of his anger and despair. He allowed himself to be led down the wrong paths, and even when she offered her friendship, he refused it. He was foolish and weak, afflicted with delusions that he clung to because he thought there was nothing better to hope for. He was blinded by his stubbornness and pride and he had to hurt those closest to him in order to realize where he had strayed. His disease soon left him, and he realized all his mistakes and sought to atone for them.

Unfortunately, his betrayal had poisoned her and she was infected with the same anger and resentment that used to run through his veins. So when he first came to seek her forgiveness, she rejected him bitterly. And he tried and tried to earn her trust but she refused to grant him what he sought. Her stubbornness and pride veiled her judgment and she was unwilling to give him another opportunity to disappoint her, to hurt her. He saw her each day and was filled with remorse at what he had done because of what it had done to _her_. He had infected her with his darkness and he wanted nothing more than to heal her. So he never stopped trying.

_Planting_

Wounds soon healed, however, and after some more struggle, she finally forgave him. With one heartfelt embrace, all the pain and anger was erased. It was only then that the seeds of friendship and love could be sown in their hearts. And very quickly did these seeds take root, for they had finally found fertile ground. In spite of everything, the firebender and the waterbender shared many things in common. They had both endured many great trials and they both displayed admirable strength of character. The more time they spent with each other, the faster the seedlings grew, the deeper the love became. They found in each other friendship such as they had never known before. Each one was willing to risk his or her life for the other. After fighting each other for so long, they now fought side by side.

For the first time in his life, he had the love of a family, and the acceptance of one he had never expected. Here was someone he could be himself with, and it was the most wonderful experience he had ever had. She found someone who shared many of her beliefs and who could even laugh at her jokes. She could talk to him about anything and she wanted to have as many opportunities as possible to do so. They both worked hard to help the Avatar fulfill his destiny because they both hoped for a better world after the war, a world where they would be free to follow their hearts.

_Harvest_

The journey had been long and difficult but it was over. There had been many hardships and roadblocks along the way but they had made it to the end. All was ready now. They could now reap the fruit of their labor.

The new world, the new era of peace, was both wonderful and frightening. Much remained uncertain and there was still a great deal of work to be done. But they were confident that, as long as they were together, they could accomplish anything. They had learned so much in their journey and they did not want to repeat any of their past mistakes. The future was theirs for the taking and they greeted this new dawn hand in hand. After all that they went through, they emerged stronger and happier. Love had triumphed over hate, bringing together two people from such different backgrounds, forging a bond in trials and tribulations, and making seasons of struggle finally bear fruit.

Zuko and Katara were together, that was how it was meant to be and that was how it would always be.


End file.
